We traveled to the Dolimites around Cortina, the Veneto, and a bit of Emilia Romana the first two weeks of September. It was an amazing trip, split between the mountains, the countryside and the bigger cities; and thematically between the natural world, World War 1, and the art of the Fresco. Many of the smaller places I just found on google maps as we put the trip together.
Part 1: the Dolomites
I would definitely watch Cameron’s Summer 2026 Trip Report on Monday Night Travel if you are thinking about going to the Dolomites. We watched it after our trip, and our experience was similar to his in the Dolomites, just farther to the east. And yes, blind curves + bicycles is unnerving.
Day 1: arrival Venice
We flew through Amsterdam. We spend 5 minutes scanning passports, etc. Very fast.
We flew into Venice and stayed in Tessera at the Marriot right next to the airport. We were going to pick up the car for the next day at the airport, so it didn’t make much sense to go much farther. There are a few restaurants and a café for breakfast in the little town.
Day 2: towards Cortina
Picked up the car and headed in the direction of Cortina. We made a quick stop at the Sacrario Militare del Montello, an Italian WW 1 monument. I was surprised there were a few motorcyclists there. We are usually the only ones at these places.
We drove on to Serravalle, which is part of Vittorio Veneto, and stopped to see the town. It’s a beautiful place with several 15th century buildings painted with frescos and a pleasant river running through it. The Palazzo Flaminio is very beautiful. We had a pleasant luch at a family-run restaurant on the plaza. It’s worth a stop if you want to break up a drive and stop for an hour or two for lunch or a coffee.
Then on to San Vito di Cadore. The drive up was impressive through elevated highways, numerous tunnels, and winding roads. I didn’t really know what to expect in this area, but even before you get deep into the Dolomites its beautiful. We stayed at the Best Western here, which was a good basic choice. San Vito is 15 minutes from Cortina and the prices are much better than Cortina. It isn’t a large town but there are plenty of restaurants and cafés. And there are beautiful mountains towering over it. Having been in Cortina, I was quite satisfied with the town. Given we were tired from the flight, took it easy the rest of the day.
Day 3: Cinque Torri & Cortina
The trip’s first hike in the Dolomites was at the Cinque Torri. I’m not sure how I picked this hike other than there are reconstructed WW1 trenches. And there are and you can walk in them and it is fascinating if you know the history. You can also look across the valley to the towering mountains that still have signs of the war. It cost us 25 Euros a piece to take the chair lift (to and from). It seemed a little expensive to pay 50 Euros for that, but I had been looking at prices for the Motorola Glacier and that was 45 a piece both ways. This seemed a better deal…I guess. The hike itself was very crowded and there were people I don’t think who should’ve been up there. I thought it was a moderate hike, but it’s quite difficult. It’s only 2 miles, but there are places where you need to sit on the ground so you can slide down to the next steps. I think there might be better hikes, and one that are less crowded. Also we got to the parking lot by 9 and it was 80% full.
Despite the short distance we were still tired (perhaps it was the altitude 7500 ft), so we came down the mountain and drove back to Cortina. Cortina is nice and lively and we walked the pedestrian street where all the design shops are. It won’t be my favorite town in Italy, but it is pleasant to pass a few hours there.